CoC : Tura Satana - Relief Through Release : Review

Tura Satana - _Relief Through Release_
(Noise Records, 1998)
by: Adrian Bromley (10 out of 10)

I can't explain to you how much I :love: this record. There is just something about Tura Satana (the band formerly known as Manhole) that fascinates me. I just can't get enough. There is a really dark and emotional charm that singer Tairrie B. has on the listener. Her voice, so dark and brooding, letting emotions snarl and snap without warning. Her tongue and words acting like a sharp sword cutting through us with every verse. While somewhat in the same vein as the Manhole record (1996's _All Is Not Well_), Tura Satana has lost a bit of that L.A. hardcore/rap/metal feel with _Relief Trough Release_ and delved deep into a truly stunning display of emotionally charged dark hard rock / metal, shrouded with a vibrant reality and slight gothic overtones. This is the real deal folks. No bullshit. No falsehoods as this band speaks from the heart. The opening of the LP states: "... Welcome to violence. This time it comes in female form..." What a fitting intro to the world of singer/screamer Tairrie B. Should we be alarmed? Oh YES! She is a devil-like vixen with many tales to weave. Her take on life and reality is like a fist to the face, a rampaging seductress on the loose. The violence and carnage is overbearing at times and we, the listener, take some serious verbal beatings from Tura Satana. Every song on this record (13 songs plus CD-ROM) is brilliant. Powerful, dark and delivering an over the top performance by a band that shifted their sound a bit to represent their musical deliverance. Think a pissed off (and heavier) Concrete Blonde mixed with Crisis and a bone-crushing groove. _RTR_ has some prime choice cuts: "Luna", "Relapse", "Venus Diablo" and the ultra-cool Nirvana cover song "Negative Creep". This is a great band that should do some real damage in the coming months.

(article published 10/3/1998)